PHS fashion students hit the runway

Salem Editor — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 14:21:00 GMT

BY DARRELL HALEN

Scott Connatser didn’t take his role as co-host of the recent student fashion show at Pelham High School too seriously.

In addition to the jokes he cracked, Connatser’s outfit was laid back as well, with his tuxedo tieless, his shirt untucked and paired with white sneakers.

“It added to the whole effect,” Connatser said after the show. “Not so professional, more relaxed and fun, too.”

The entire night was fun for the 51 students who put on the show, where students modeled formal wear, business attire, casual clothing, sportswear and work uniforms before an audience of classmates, friends and family members.

“Rockin’ the Runway” was presented Thursday, Dec. 6, in the school’s gymnasium. It was a mix of modeling, skits, music and humor that elicited applause, cheers and whistles from the audience.

“Are you guys ready to rock?” Kaytee Pinette, Connatser’s cohost, asked the enthusiastic audience. The show was presented in six segments, some of which opened with a skit.

One act featured sounds from the musical “Grease,” where six young women appeared as the Pink Ladies while four guys in blue jeans and leather jackets performed as the T-Birds.

During the skit that kicked off the sportswear segment, Jen Stanton and Shelly Beaudoin battled it out as two boxers to the theme from “Rocky.”

Popular songs sounded throughout the night as students walked and turned on the runway.

Kyle Sharpe, wearing a black tuxedo, twirled Beaudoin, who had donned a green gown, as the John Michael Montgomery song “I Swear” played.

Clothes for the working world were showcased to the sounds of Loverboy’s “Working for the Weekend,” Bachman- Turner Overdrive’s “Taking Care of Business,” and Donna Summer’s “She Works Hard for the Money.”

During that segment, one girl was dressed as a police officer while another wore firefighter gear.

In the athletic wear segment, students wore workout clothes, and Red Sox and Patriots jerseys. Some were ready for snowboarding. Sharpe was dressed as a snowmobiler.

The group who put on the show are made up of two classes of students taking fashions this semester. They began working on the show one day a week at the beginning of the school year and committed to it daily in November.

The teens, wearing clothes borrowed from local stores, worked in teams with specific responsibilities: music, program, finance, stage and advertising.

Money raised from the show will be used to pay for a day trip to New York City.

“It was a lot of fun,” said senior Dan Trainor, who, while wearing a suit, got down on one knee and handed a flower to Elizabeth Duffy, who was dressed in an orange gown.

Changing clothes in time during the show was stressful, he said, but going on stage before the audience “was a pretty good rush.”

While working to produce the show, students learn to organize, prioritize, manage their time, work as a team and compromise, said teacher Jane Martin.

“They have to work for the good of the fashion show, not for the good of themselves,” said Martin who was handed a bouquet from her appreciative students before intermission.

During the show’s last segment, “Rockin’ Out,” which featured a variety of colors, several models appeared in light green shirts with the words “My Michelle” printed on them.

It was a tribute to Michelle Lemieux, a student who died as the result of a car accident last March. She was born on St. Patrick’s Day, so green was the appropriate color.

“Some were a little teary eyed when they came back (stage),” Martin said. “They do miss her.”

Pelham News : Fashion Show

PHS fashion students hit the runway